How To Teach Your Child Good Manners – A Series on Good Manners 1

It is every parent’s dream to raise children who are well mannered. Good manners don’t just happen though, they have to be taught.

Children, as we often hear, learn more by observation and constant practice. When parents exhibit good manners, it’s easier for a child to catch on more easily, and then good manners will come be a part of that child.

When it comes to Good Manners, there are several areas to explore and different scenarios where good manners will play out. In this series, we want to discuss how we can, as parents, help our kids to be developed into well mannered children.

Before we begin to explore these different areas, what are the basics in teaching good manners to your child:

• At the basis of being good mannered is teaching a child to respect others. If your have respect for others, it will show in your interaction with them, and this will reflect as good manners. So, the first thing you want your child to know is showing respect to others – treating others as he will like to be treated.
• Start early. In trying to instil good manners in our children, a lot of us parents often give the excuses that the children are young, they’ll get better with age. I beg to disagree, good manners are more easily taught from the younger ages, and a child won’t automatically be good mannered just because he’s older.
• Teach Manners by example. You cannot expect a child to exhibit good manners if he’s not being shown how good manners work. It starts with us as parents, as we model good manners in our daily interaction with others, our children will follow our examples
• Treat Your Child with Respect too. It’s easier for your child to act the way he’s being treated. If in your interaction with your child, you show them respect, then they internalize it, and can easily pass it on to others.

If you wonder why some other children are so polite, it is because they are constantly exposed to politeness. And in that polite environment, respect and good manners are automatically expected.

As Moms, let’s create an atmosphere for our children to learn good manners.

Oluseye Ashiru